How can I decide what's right
When you're clouding up my mind?
I can't win your losing fight
All the time
Nor can I ever own what's mine
When you're always taking sides
But you won't take away my pride
[Pre-Chorus]
No, not this time
Not this time
[Chorus]
How did we get here
When I used to know you so well?
But how did we get here?
Well, I think I know
[Verse 2]
The truth is hiding in your eyes
And it's hanging on your tongue
Just boiling in my blood
But you think that I can't see
What kind of man that you are
If you're a man at all
Well, I will figure this one out
On my own (I'm screaming, "I love you so")
On my own (But my thoughts, you can't decode)
[Chorus]
But how did we get here
When I used to know you so well? Yeah
How did we get here?
Well, I think I know
[Bridge]
Do you see what we've done?
We've gone and made such fools of ourselves
Do you see what we've done?
We've gone and made such fools of ourselves
[Breakdown]
Yeah, yeah
Hey
[Chorus]
How did we get here
When I used to know you so well? Yeah, yeah, yeah
Well, how did we get here
When I used to know you so well?
I think I know
I think I know
[Outro]
Ooh, there is something
I see in you
It might kill me
I want it to be true
About
Paramore had already had their breakthrough with RIOT! and Misery Business, but Decode put the band on a complete new level of superstardom. The song, written for the soundtrack to the 2008 movie Twilight, was released as its lead single and became a commercial success. The band gained international recognition and attracted a lot of new fans.
The band revealed they were fans of the series, and Hayley Williams, in an artist-on-artist interview for MySpace with Robert Pattinson, who portrays Edward in the film series, said she really wanted to be part of it.
We wrote the song and Josh had this really cool music and I thought it fit the vibe and the tone of the story. We just kind of chased after it. We were knocking on doors when we could. We got lucky. I didn’t think it would work.
The song was written from Bella’s (Kristen Stweart) perspective and narrates her feelings towards Edward. The song can be heard playing during the film’s credits.
At the 52nd Grammy Awards, Decode received a nomination for Best Song Written for Visual Media.
The song was also included as bonus track on international releases of the band’s 2009 album, brand new eyes.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
Hayley Williams said in a statement regarding the title of the song:
[“Decode”] is about the building tension, awkwardness, anger and confusion between [story characters] Bella and Edward. Bella’s is the only mind Edward can’t read and I feel like that’s a big part of the first book and one of the obstacles for them to overcome. It’s one added tension that makes the story even better.
- 1.Careful
- 2.Ignorance
- 3.Playing God
- 5.Turn It Off
- 8.Looking Up
- 10.Misguided Ghosts
- 11.All I Wanted
- 12.Decode